In the still of the night, fathers and daughters found a way to beat the summertime blues. With dads slipping on their blue suede shoes and daughters decked out in Chantilly lace there was a whole lotta shakin' goin' on at the hop, the Fairbanks Armed Services YMCA's annual father-daughter gala, held at the Pioneer Park, June 7, 2014.
The gala brought servicemen and their daughters together for a night to remember filled with food, fun and dancing.
"In the past, it's always like a princess theme," said Rachel Oldfield, program coordinator for the ASYMCA. "We've done the enchanted forest, Camelot, and last year was an under-the-sea theme."
"(This year), we wanted to do something fun, something different and still make every girl feel special," she added.
Oldfield said the dance is an opportunity for fathers to spend precious time with their daughters, strengthen the father-daughter bond, and create memories that last a lifetime.
"I think we kind of learn that our dads our first love, so I just thought it was extra special to see girls come out and dance with their dads and be treated like a lady for a night," she said. "It's that special bond a dad and a daughter can experience for that one night."
For one father in particular, this memory he would surely hold dear, for this would be the last weekend he would get to spend with his little girl for the next nine months.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle Keihn, a Kiowa pilot with 6th Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, who deployed to Korea just a few days after the dance said he and his daughter had a great time.
"It was a chance to be at our first father-daughter dance, to get dressed up and get some special father-daughter time, which is hard to get," said Keihn.
Keihn said he was a little worried at first about the dance since this was his first time attending one and his daughter was quite young. But after he arrived and saw what it was all about, he said he was pleasantly surprised.
"It was a good time and it was oriented towards the younger kids which was nice," said Keihn. "It was just right."
Keihn and 4-year-old daughter Anabelle danced the night away, with only a few small breaks, one of which was to kick off Anabelle's shoes so she could continue to hop, spin and run circles around her dad.
So if Mister Sandman got you all shook up and you missed the opportunity to rock around the clock this year, don't start singing the blues. Just look for next year's event and make it unforgettable.
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